‘SNL’ alum resurfaces onstage, in ‘Hamilton’
who, with a few memorable pop tunes, warns the upstart American colonists that they will regret their revolutionary acts.
The role, which he began on Tuesday in place of Rory O’Malley, marked Killam’s Broadway debut. The opportunity is a big one for the 34-year-old alumnus of “Saturday Night Live,” who is close with “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and director Thomas Kail.
“I don’t want to let my friends down, more than anything,” Killam said late last month.
The role is also Killam’s first major project since the announcement in the summer that wouldn’t be returning to “SNL,” where he had spent six seasons playing politicians such as
Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and Paul Ryan, as well as characters such as Jebidiah Atkinson, a feisty newspaper critic from the 1860s.
Killam recently talked about his preparations for “Hamilton” and his unlikely sketch-comedy career.
Is your role as King George a good fit?
Of course, the king is the appropriate role for me. Not to mention my skin pigmentation really helps in getting cast. I was like, “This is going to be a piece of cake; I know his songs like the back of my hand.” And then we did those songs within 15 minutes, and the next hour-and-a-half was all the harmonies that the king has to sing for the rest of the show. Which I did not know.
Do you think your “Weekend Update” appearances as Jebidiah Atkinson helped get you cast?
Obviously there’s very funny parallels between Jebidiah and King George — the dandy-ness of the character, the theatricality.
You studied musical theater at the University of California at Los Angeles. Was it an accident that you ended up in sketch comedy?
Complete accident. Kenan Thompson and I had the same manager, and “MadTV” called to see if Kenan would want to audition. I was a very good mimic, so they said: “There’s this really funny kid, if you want to do something different.” I think I ended up doing 23 different impressions to audition and got it. The TV Guide article that announced it said comedians Bobby Lee and Taran Killam are joining.
I’m like, “I’m not a comedian.” But it turned out I was OK at it, so I stuck with it for a while.
Were you disappointed you weren’t brought back to “SNL” this season?
I found out the final decision while I was on set, directing my first movie (“Why We’re Killing Gunther”). Part of the decision came from this pilot offer from Showtime (“Mating”). If it wasn’t this past season, it was going to be this season, and that’s really what the conversation was about. I think they probably asked the question: “Why fill a year, just because?” Honestly, thank goodness. Because it’s a tough schedule, and “SNL” just does require all of you.
Your wife, Cobie Smulders, will make her Broadway debut in the spring in a revival of “Present Laughter.” Do you
compare notes? Every day:
The fitting was the most fun of my first official week. You go to these amazing loft spaces in the middle of Manhattan, and they are the people who do period garments for the last 50 years of Broadway. They’re like: “All right, spread your legs. Turn around. No, your hips are 35, trust me. OK, bye.” No ceremony at all.
There’s a ritual that “Hamilton” holds, called the Order of the Garter, each time it brings in a new King George. Does the new guy also get hazed?
We all know what bullies those musical theater kids are. Is there a cape raid, where they steal my cape and dip it in cold water and put it in the freezer the night before my first show? That’s what I would do.